Mobile Machine Monitoring

Smartphones and tablets have already been hitting the plant floor as a method for monitoring machine performance, system status, and process data. But now automation control suppliers are developing a next level of hardware and software development tools that will speed up and extend the power of mobile factory apps.

By providing easy access to machine control information and an almost unlimited capability for displaying process data, these solutions will likely spawn a new generation of iOS and Android web apps focused on mobile machine monitoring and (eventually) control.

We are seeing that machine builders want to build more accessible machines, and get more information into the hands of the operators. As machines get more complex, information available in the motion controller or PLC control need to be connected to mobile devices. Traditional machine HMIs are morphing into the mobile world.

New mobile apps are being designed to combine traditional PLC process control with the IT world and factor networks, with the goal of enabling users to easily get process data from machines on the manufacturing floor. (Source: Bosch Rexroth Corp.)

He said that applications at this point are more targeted at monitoring, visualization, and data evaluation, and not directly controlling a machine because of security risks. But as machines get more complex, there is more of a focus on visualization, data information exchange, and not necessarily on controlling the machine.

What Bosch Rexroth is trying to achieve with its Open Core Engineering technology is to combine traditional PLC process control with the IT world, factory networks, and enabling users to easily get process data out of a machine. This is accomplished not just by connecting the field bus to an OPC server, but also by implementing a core communication feature in their controls, which allows a higher-level access.

Higher level means that access could be implemented using a smartphone (iOS or Android), or a Windows-based PC running Visual Studio. Fischbach told us:

We are allowing access by higher level development environments to our motion control core. In the past, you always had to go through a field bus. It's all Ethernet TCP/IP-based using high data rates which is really great for visualizations, but also for machine control. The key issues we are trying to address are efficiency in software engineering by offering customers development kits. Options include Eclipse for Android, Xcode for Apple IOS, and Microsoft Visual Studio.

By allowing customers to develop real-time applications and run them on the Bosch Rexroth control, there is an ability to communicate with machine or motion controllers typically using Wind River Workbench Real-time or VxWorks. "That is the part of the efficiency and software engineering goal that we try to address with Open Core," said Fischbach. "We try to address future availability of the solution. Many manufacturers implement their own solutions, but we try to work with open standards and use an open automation platform."

The strategy enables machinery builders and system integrators writing application software to build a new level of software support tools for their machines using mobile devices. And the unique part of the approach is that the tools enable users to reach into the core software within the automation system.

In the past, machines typically had a PLC controlling a series of motors and applications running in production. But today, quality and productivity has become more important. So the machine builder wants machine information available on the machine control system, which is often PC-based but could also be a mobile device.

bobjengr, The kind of needs you had are one of the prime areas where this technology will be useful in the short run. It provides a way to easily gather important production and/or engineering information in a convenient format. Thanks for your note.

Very Very interesting Al. I retired some years ago from a major in the appliance industry. As a design engineer, we had responsibility for monitoring reliability testing for components used in our designs; i.e. subassemblies and overall assemblies. This, back then, this meant two-maybe three- trips per day to the reliability test lab to look at and evaluate the date. Trends, as you might imagine were very important. We evaluated products between upper and lower specification limits and against vendor limits of acceptability. That lab was in an adjacent building so component monitoring was a time-consuming process. The technology you mention would greatly aid efforts in keeping track of failures and off-quality performance. Let' hope this trend continues. Again--excellent post. Good informaiton.

At this point, the greatest number of mobile devices in use are for monitoring, gathering data and production information. There are definitely some iPads being implemented as HMIs on machines but I don't get the sense that it represents a significant trend.

I dislike the disposable civilization we have but low-cost HMIs such as android tablets make some sense in an industrial environment. I've seen too many VERY expensive HMIs destroyed by the act of using them (dust, grit, cutting the resistive screen). Using a low cost screen, tossing it when it fails, might be the less-expensive route.

Naperlou, Thanks for your comments. The groov solution from Opto22 actually provides a browser-based, HTML 5/CSS solution which should work on any of the devices you mention (and should be a nearly universal solution). The Open Core engineering approach enables the OEM machine to build an app using a software platform they select, so the machine builder would need to target specific platforms. Good input.

Al, this is an interesting trend. On the other hand, there is another trend that will affect this. PC's are becoming more like tablets. There are now PCs with detachable displays that become tablets. There are others where the display pivots so that the whole device becomes a tablet (actually IBM/Lenovo has had one for some time). These are touch devices, and being PCs have a lot more processing power than tablets. If you just need a portable display that can also access exteranl data, then a tablet might be fine. On the other hand, tablets do not do multitasking that well.

By using the latest HTML standards, developers can avoid limitations imposed by the device architecture. That is a good way to go.

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